On August 15, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE) introduced its intent to accumulate Morpheus Information, a multicloud administration answer “to make HPE GreenLake cloud the de facto platform for innovating IT.” The deal is anticipated to shut early FY2024 This fall of its fiscal yr. Morpheus follows a string of HP acquisitions in recent times (OpsRamp (2023), Ampool (2021), and Zerto  (2021)) meant to aggressively strengthen GreenLake’s software program portfolio.
Why Morpheus?
For HPE, this information is unsurprising. Its Greenlake answer is closely depending on and already whitelabels Morpheus’ product as its personal hybrid cloud administration providing.  Morpheus, a pacesetter in hybrid cloud administration, provides huge credibility to HPE’s GreenLake product which positions itself as a hybrid cloud answer however lacks true native administration capabilities. Its plans to leverage the Morpheus’ full portfolio suite, together with its new cloud value administration product underscores the corporate’s intention to insert itself firmly into the cloud administration house.
For Morpheus, the acquisition settlement is shocking and regarding. A rising star within the hybrid cloud administration house, Morpheus fills a much-needed area of interest. Its lighter weight capabilities, cheaper price level, and public cloud centered answer is a welcome distinction to the complicated, excessive priced conventional hybrid cloud administration choices. With it’s acquisition into Morpheus the HPE ecosystem, long-term success is not any assure
HPE’s Acquisition Historical past Has A Checkered Previous
Lots of HPE’s cloud acquisitions have struggled. Its 2014 Eucalyptus acquisition, which was the premise of its public cloud providing HPE Helion, was shut down two years later and shipped off to DXC Know-how (an HP Enterprise companies merge with Laptop Sciences Company). A yr later DXC stopped all help and improvement for Eucalyptus. HPE’s 2017 acquisition of Cloud Cruiser’s cloud value administration capabilities have been rapidly subsumed into GreenLake as a pay-per-use metering performance. Whereas the cloud world was lit on fireplace for FinOps and a gold rush ensued to supply cloud value administration options, HPE made no strikes to increase Cloud Cruiser to fulfill these wants. Little to no motion has occurred with OpsRamp since its acquisition in 2023.  Alternatively, its 2017 Cloud Know-how Companions (CTP) acquisition was a expertise acquisition that stuffed out the very obligatory GreenLake companies providing.
In networking, HP and HPE have acquired 10 or so networking corporations—Riverstone to 3Com- to attempt to fill within the areas ProCurve didn’t have. Whereas a few of the acquisitions have been profitable, reminiscent of Aruba Networks, many weren’t. Those that flourished, reminiscent of ProCurve rising to a billion greenback enterprise and Aruba Networks doubling in measurement, have been run with some independence from HP and HPE. 3Com, Colubris, and others have both been offered again off or disappeared when networking was underneath the server and storage divisions. HPE is now integrating Aruba and the latest acquisitions (Silverpeak and Axis) into the server and storage teams.
What Does This Imply For HPE GreenLake Clients?
For its clients, not a lot will change – for now. Morpheus is the underpinning to GreenLake’s hybrid cloud administration capabilities. For Morpheus clients not at the moment utilizing GreenLake, prepare for the upsell to adopting the bigger GreenLake portfolio. When you’ve got the price range to undertake GreenLake, it might be a great transfer in direction of a extra unified seamless hybrid cloud. For those who don’t have the price range, take into account different mild weight choices in CCMO options which are increasing to on-premises visibility or multicloud container platforms and increase with infrastructure automation merchandise.
As for Morpheus’ future roadmap and innovation, the query hangs within the stability. HPE has struggled with cloud acquisitions however has succeeded in different areas, significantly in networking and personal cloud. Relying on the urge for food, management help, and the information to navigate the HPE local weather, Morpheus may, in principle, impact change. Or, on the very least, it may proceed on its identical path of innovation earlier than it comes underneath the HPE umbrella.
